Seasons Change

18.

Umm... come again?

I eyed Luke warily, wondering what the heck he was talking about. I liked him, sure, but he was definitely not my boyfriend. We were barely even friends at this point. So why had he said that?

Avery gave him a naughty smile. "Well, that's too bad," she pouted. "You could do so much better than Lilly. If you ever decide to trade up, I'd be happy to show you how a real girlfriend treats her man."

Luke stood behind me, wrapping his arms around me in a possessive hug. "I'm happy with Lilly, thanks," he said. "You might try being a little nicer. Being a bitch is such a turn off. Besides, if you're going to be two faced, you should at least make one of them pretty."

Avery narrowed her eyes, noticing for the first time that Luke was carrying a bag. "Umm, you can't stay here," she sputtered. "Lilly didn't get my permission, and I am definitely not okay with coed sleepovers."

I smiled cattily at her. "Actually, there's no rule that says I can't have guests stay over, with or without your permission. I checked. Nice try, Avery. Luke is sleeping here. Emphasis on sleeping. And there's nothing you can do about it."

Avery sputtered angrily before storming out of the room., slamming the door behind her.

I turned toward Luke, quirking an eyebrow at him. "Really Luke?" I teased, planting my hands on my hips. "It's kind of presumptuous to call yourself my boyfriend without asking me out first, don't you think?"

Luke grinned sheepishly, letting out a small laugh. "I just thought it would get Avery riled up," he said with a smirk. "Besides, it was a self-defense measure. That girl was sizing me up like she wanted to eat me for breakfast, and I am not interested. If she thinks I'm dating you, she'll back off."

I laughed, shaking my head. "No, she won't," I informed him. "Avery's not real clear on boundaries. I tried that when she was making a move on Dylan. We claimed he was my boyfriend when he first met her, and she still threw herself at him. The girl is shameless."

Luke smirked, raising an eyebrow at me. "So let me get this straight... you have fake dated both me and my cousin this year? I hate to say it, but I think you're the shameless one, Lillian."

"Oh, whatever Lucas," I sputtered, rolling my eyes at him. "You're the one who told Avery you were my boyfriend. I think that makes you the shameless one."

Even as I said the words, though, I couldn't quite stop the grin that was spreading over my face. Bantering with Luke was a lot of fun. It was almost like old times.

"Look, I know you wanted me to show you around campus, but I'm honestly not sure where to take you," I admitted. "Not to mention, I really don't want to risk running into Avery while we are out. I'm supposed to meet Dylan tonight for tacos, which you're more than welcome to join us for. Do you have any ideas for what you want to do until then? We could probably watch a movie or something."

Luke winked at me. "Movie dates are so cliche," he said. "Does your dorm have a kitchen?"

I nodded. "Yeah, there's a huge public one in the basement that has a couple of ovens and some microwaves and stuff."

"Great," Luke said with a smile. "Then I think we need to go to the store."

I watched him carefully, waiting for him to explain what he wanted to do. When he didn't, I asked, "Why? Are we going to bake something?"

"You'll see," Luke replied. "It's a surprise."

At the store, I watched in amused wonder as Luke filled the shopping cart with all of the baking staples: flour, sugar, butter, baking powder, chocolate... the list went on and on.